AMELIA - A year removed from being limited to local round-robin competitions due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 18U Midland Redskins baseball organization is looking forward to defending its Connie Mack World Series title.
Since last season's tournament was canceled, the elite of all of the Midland teams will seek its fourth straight championship and 17th overall in Farmington, New Mexico.
The Redskins last won two years ago in 2019 coming out of the consolation bracket. In 2018, Cal Conley of West Clermont (now with Texas Tech) and Lane Flamm (Xavier) and Zade Richardson (St. Louis Cardinals organization) of New Richmond played key roles in bringing home the trophy.
In 2017, Luke Waddell of Loveland (Georgia Tech) was part of the title run with Conley and Flamm.
Now, along with a who's who of out-of-town players, Midland's top squad again has some familiar high school faces who seek the winning dogpile in New Mexico in late July. Some will then head to prestigious college programs.
Infielder Lauden Brooks of McNicholas was on last year's squad confined to the Midland Complex in Amelia. The Greater Catholic League-Coed Division Player of the Year and Kentucky signee now is joined by Rockets pitcher Brady Hopkins (Bellarmine).
Another nearby player is Anderson's Josh Overbeek, the Eastern Cincinnati Conference Player of the Year who will head to Pitt.
"I'm excited to be part of the team this year," Overbeek said. "There's a lot of good dudes, a lot of guys from out of town. I'm learning. We're here to play ball and that's it. It's pretty much 24/7/365. Trying to win (championship) four this year."
Overbeek, like the rest of the Redskins, is getting acclimated to the wooden bat this summer. Helping him along is teammate/roommate Owen Blackledge out of North Canton Hoover, who will head to TCU. Blackledge is the son of former Penn State and NFL quarterback Todd Blackledge.
"For right now, we're all focused on this," Overbeek said. "It's cool seeing the guys get behind each other."
Also from the ECC is West Clermont's Trevor Conley, brother of Cal, who topped the league in hitting and will play at Howard College in Texas, an hour and a half from Texas Tech where Cal plays. Michael Conte is a pitcher from Walnut Hills who will next suit up at Central Michigan.
"This is my second year with Midland and I think we have more than a legit shot at winning this Connie Mack," Conte said. "The biggest thing for me is learning from all these guys. They're at the point they are because they're good at something. For me, it's what can I learn from all these guys?"
From the Greater Catholic League-South there is Clay Burdette of Moeller (Ohio State commit) and La Salle's Devin Taylor (Indiana commit), who is also a second-year player with the Redskins. Taylor was GCL-South first team as a freshman in 2019, missed 2020 like everyone, and missed a couple of months of the most recent season due to injury. The sweet-swinging 17-year-old lefty is hoping for a successful summer.
"Every day you have to work for it," Taylor said of winning a championship. "They're not just going to give it to people who don't really deserve it. Whoever deserves it goes. My goal is to work my hardest every day, do what I can to be the best for the team."
GCL-South Pitcher of the Year William Jaun of St. Xavier was also selected to be on the 2021 roster.
"Coming from the GCL-South you're always taught that's the best league in Ohio," Jaun said. "You get down here and you get matched up with the best of the best. It's been an honor to compete with the best of the best in everyday practice and the guys you're lining up against across on the other team. It's an honor to learn from other dudes who are really talented."
Unfortunately, Jaun recently suffered an injury and is out for the time being. He is heading to Cornell of the Ivy League where he hopes to resume his playing career as a two-way player upon recovery.
Former Oak Hills player Cam Brandt is an infielder on the roster who plays at Northern Kentucky but can be included due to his birthday. Fenwick pitcher Carter Earls and Vandalia Butler catcher Boston Smith are both University of Cincinnati commits on the team.
From the Greater Miami Conference, strikeout thrower Evan Whiteaker of Lakota East is also an Indiana commit like La Salle's Taylor. Whiteaker had 78 strikeouts in 41.2 innings with a 2.02 ERA for the Thunderhawks.
"I've been playing for Midland since I was 12 and I've been to a million Redskins games," Whiteaker said. "Just hearing about Farmington and that experience and being part of a team that could possibly win a fourth in a row is a great thing to be a part of."
Coached by Dave Evans, the Redskins have their eyes on the prize again in northwest New Mexico where they have an automatic bid as Connie Mack defending champions in late July. The team is no longer controlled by the Hayden family who sold to St. Louis businessman Matt Shadow over the winter.
Shadow runs Bandit Baseball of St. Louis and his team will become the Midland Bandits after this season with the current Midland teams in Ohio retaining their names.
"It's a program that you know has great history," Shadow said in March. "I look at it as the New York Yankees of youth baseball. You can't let something like that just leave. It's an opportunity that I think is amazing. I'm grateful to the Hayden family."
The Midland history includes names many will recall with Cincinnatians Barry Larkin, Ken Griffey Jr., Todd Benzinger, Ron Oester, Bill Doran, Chris Welsh, Richard Dotson and Jim Leyritz. More recent names include big leaguers Andrew Benintendi, Eric Hosmer, Luke Maile, Scooter Gennett and Matt Harvey.
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